Green news: the European Council adopted its position on the European Commission's proposal for a "Green Claims Directive" on 17 June 2024.

A 2020 European Commission study found that more than half of environmental claims in marketing are vague or misleading. Greenwashing is everywhere. The Commission is trying to curb this through the proposed Green Claims Directive.

The Green Claims Directive will impose strict rules on the substantiation and communication of voluntary explicit environmental claims and eco-labels. In short, it means that claims and labels must be very firmly (and understandable to consumers) substantiated, pre-checked by an independent verifier, and clearly communicated, with clear reference to the full substantiation.

The European Council's position now comes with a number of proposed changes. The most important:

• Certain types of environmental claims would be exempt from prior verification thanks to a simplified procedure. Companies could then publish their claims with a technical document as substantiation. The purpose of this is to reduce the administrative burden.
• In addition, the Council gives small companies an extra 14 months to comply with the new rules, and helps them with (for example) compliance guidelines and financial support.
• The Council proposes more detailed rules regarding carbon credit programs.

The Council's position is the basis for negotiations with the European Parliament. These negotiations will start after the summer. Two years after the Green Claims Directive will be adopted, the new rules will come into force in the countries of the European Union.

Although the exact rules are not yet known - many amendments will follow in the negotiation process - companies would be wise to prepare for the coming into force of the new rules, starting with raising awareness within the company.

Need support? Hoogenraad & Haak's advertising team will be happy to help you out!